Turn the Page
by Ryeran
Summary: A peaceful morning in Vale is interrupted by a thunderous blast followed by the appearance of a new warrior. Who could he be? What will come of his arrival; a new quest?
1. Road to Home

Turn the Page

Barrin Master | Writer; Producer

Disclaimers:  Golden Sun and it's characters, world, and story belongs to Camelot and Nintendo.  Turn the Page (the inspiration for this story) was reproduced by Metallica.  Relic, however, belongs to my friend and me.  The character introduced here belongs to me.

_Author's note_: text in _italics_ means it's a flashback.

_Chapter 1______Road to Home

The sun slowly raised its glorious face over the mountainous horizon, lighting a valley with its warm, morning light.  A single village sat at one end of the basin, behind it a very distinct mountain, smoking from a crater at the top.

Looking over in the distance past the town and the rocky barrier hugging the far end of the vale, a plain could be seen stretching over towards a foggy unknown.

A thunderous blast suddenly disrupts the peaceful morning.  A giant flock of birds rises out of a nearby forest and floats over into the distance more or less in the same direction.  At the edge of the wood bordering the steep rock of the range, there was a light like an explosion.

A person is thrown onto a slope of grass and dark gray stone.  He rolled for some distance before the scenery started changing from rock to grass to forest floor.  He slowed down on the softer terrain of ferns and dried pine needles, and finally stopped against a tree.

At length he slowly sat up against the trunk.  He had brown hair that draped over the sides of his face.  It was long enough to barely reach his shoulders, and he had a matching pair of piercing brown eyes.  The young warrior studied his surroundings.  A forest, mostly evergreen, with the mountain slope just starting to get steep at the last tree some forty feet in the distance.  He looked up some more at the point where the grass seemed to stop and the crag just continued upward until it reached one of many snow-capped peaks.  He turned his head and looked down into the forest.  Hundreds of trees appeared to cage the mountain on the other side of the young man.  A few fallen trees in a couple of places interrupt what would be an endless view of pillars, and greenery.  Way down into the valley a fog lingered in the midst of the pines.  He also felt cold, but that maybe due to the possibility of winter in progress here.

The boy stood up and adjusted his equipment.  He wore a deep red tunic with black-bordered sleeves, belt, and collar.  His sword matched his clothes.  It was masterfully crafted with a leather-covered handle, and a sheath strapped to his back, the hilt visible over his right shoulder.  Mounted at the very end of the hilt is a red stone, a ruby that reflected light into a beautiful red glimmer.  He drew his hands over his face, pulling back the loose hair.  As he felt the top of his head, he froze.

"Whe-...Where's my hat?"

He looked around to see if it got away from him as he was rolling down the mountain.  Continuing his gaze heavenward towards the nearby peak, and spotted a little yellow object about a hundred feet up the hill.  He sighed and started making his way up the mountain.

After a few minutes he reached his destination.  The young warrior reached down and picked up one of his favorite possessions.  It was a straw farmer's hat about eighteen inches across.  He had it for quite a while, and it looked rather worn with a few small holes and rips.  He dusted his cover off, brushed the hair out of his face once again, and placed the sun-hat on his head.  He stood with his hands on his hips and took advantage of the view to take a look around.

A small village rested a few miles away on the edge of the valley under one of the taller mountains.  A volcano, as it appears.  It also sat in the midst of a forest of its own.  It looked to be a couple of hours away, if he walked.  He started toward the area of the village, sticking to the steepness of the range instead of going down into the basin.  He would enter their woods from behind and do the same for the town.  He didn't know WHAT types these people were.  As a matter of fact, he felt that he couldn't, and shouldn't, invest his trust in anyone at the time.

_____  
Around noon the boy finally started stepping into a more wooded terrain.  He had been walking for hours over a clear grassy slope.  By now the sun glared down upon noonlit world.  Despite the possibility that winter may be chilling these lands, it's still getting hot.  After traversing the distance between the two small forests, the warrior was relieved to get under the shadows.  

He stopped and leaned against a tree, then sat down and let out a heavy sigh, wiping his brow.  He reached over his side and rummaged through a little pouch.  He pulled out a small blue gem about the size of a pocket watch.  He lifted it up into the light and studied how it shined a brilliant blue over his face.

_(flashback)  
A giant blue dragon burst out of the sea dangerously close to a sailing vessel.  It howled and looked around, searching for whatever had disturbed its slumber.  Men on the boat started going crazy, running this way and that desperately looking for shelter.  Others hurried to their assigned posts, arming weapons or something that would eliminate the urgent threat._

The dragon, having spotted the ship, dove under the surface and sped towards it.  It hit the underside, jarring the entire structure and also, everyone on it.

This is what got his attention.  This young warrior was resting in the barracks and when he felt the shock.  He wore Rhonian clothes, mostly brown with a simple shirt and loose pants, but also with a thick and distinctly decorated cloth draped over his left shoulder.  It had a simple design with two large rectangles and a triangle at the end of the pattern.  He also had his large farmer's hat too.

He knew exactly what was happening, and how to stop it.  He grabbed his sword off the end of the bunk and hastily strapped it over his shoulder.  At once he was out the door and through the halls to fight this monster.

As soon as he stepped outside the dragon immediately faced him.  Unsheathing his sword, he dove to the left, and rolled behind some crates.  The beast swiped at the boxes, reducing them to scrap-board.  His cover blown, he jumped up, avoiding another slash, and landed on the creature's head.  Before the dragon could react, the warrior leaped up again into the crow's nest on the top of the mast.  The dragon was enraged.  It let out another thunderous roar and swung its tail up towards the young man, now standing defiantly in the lookout tower.  While the end of the dragons tail came up, the combatant came down, air resistance making his clothes and hair flap around wildly.  The dragon's tail missed the man and it attempted to slice at him with its claws before he could reach the deck; miss.  He landed on the floor and sprinted under the creature at break-neck speed.  Without delay the man swung his sword up, and as he reached the dragon's upper body he plunged the blade deep into its undefended heart.

The dragon shrieked as it started to lose its balance, and crumpled onto the deck.  The man raced out from under the creature before he could be crushed.  He felt the ship shudder and heard the crash of the fall, and he turned around to face the dying thing.  Already a giant pool of dark red blood was accumulating around the dragon.  He walked up to its head, sheathed his sword, and knelt in front of its face.  He slowly placed his hand on its head and closed his eyes.  There he stayed, seeming to talk to the dragon, apologizing for its untimely death.  The dragon appeared to accept his request for forgiveness, and closed its eyes.

To the onlookers' astonishment, the dragon vanished, leaving the bloody puddle behind.  A glimmer caught the warrior's eye and he looked down.  In the midst of the crimson liquid, a jewel sat.  He reached down and picked it up.  He examined it thoroughly, the blood dripping off of the stone.  It was a sapphire.  No doubt about it.  There was something odd about it, though.  It felt strangely cool in his scarlet-stained fingertips.

He also felt something vibrate slightly in his pouch.  He reached inside and pulled out the object, a topaz.  He found it just outside of Rhon, a small town in the west.  It was very similar to the sapphire in shape and size, except that when he touched the topaz, his fingertips felt a tingling sensation, like there was electricity running through them.  The sapphire still felt cold to the touch, even though it was just inside a living body and should be warm.  The man pondered over his discovery.

'Perhaps the gems are connected, somehow,' he thought.  For the moment he just shrugged it off and placed both in his pouch.  
(end flashback)

The young man sat in a long silence while looking over the blue jewel.  After a while he sighed and leaned his head against the tree.  Rays of sunlight pierced the canopy and dotted the forest floor with bits of warm light.  'It's so peaceful here.  I wonder how long it'll take before I find this town.  It could be a while.'

His thoughts soon wandered back to the stones again.  'I think these gems _are_ connected.  It seems that each of the stone's properties get stronger the closer they are to each other.  I wonder if there are others in this world...' he trailed off, and then was snapped out of his thoughts by an unmistakable sound.

"The river!"  He jumped up.  "It HAS to go through that town!" he exclaimed hopefully.  Intent on following the stream to the village, he quickly walked down the steep forest in the general direction the sound was coming from.  The townspeople could tell him exactly where he is, and maybe he can find a way back to his home world.  At that the boy started sprinting swiftly down the forested mountainside, dodging fallen trunks and large rocks.  It won't be long before he would reach the river, his 'road to home'.

_____  
_Author's notes_:

(1) This character, if you haven't already figured it out, is not from the Golden Sun dimension.  He was transported from his world in a flash of light, and found himself in another world.  Apparently, he has experienced something like this before.  Actually, he came into the Golden Sun world directly from another unfamiliar one.

He hopes to find a way home in this village.  The river, he believes, is the path to the town.  Linking the town as his way home, he refers to the river as his 'road to home'.

(2) The average reader might not have picked this up, but some might notice that the boy's discretion towards other people abnormally fluctuates.  I meant to do this, and there is a reason for it.  So just keep reading.

(3) I apologize for any over-usage of the words 'boy', 'young man/warrior', and especially 'he' in this narrative.  I didn't want his name revealed yet.  As his name is spoken, these words will be used more sparingly.  Don't worry; his name is coming up pretty soon.

Well, that about does it.  Hope you liked it.  The next chapter should be up sometime next week.

~master


	2. Into the River and Through the Woods

_Chapter 2______Into the River and Through the Woods

"Hey Isaac, hold on!" a voice called out.

A man stopped in his tracks.  He was about six feet tall with spiky brown/blonde hair and deep, ash-blue eyes.  "What is it this time, Garet?" he said exasperatedly as he turned around to face his friend.  As soon as Isaac could see Garet running up to him, he tripped on a rock and fell square on his face.

"Ooomph."

Isaac couldn't help but burst into laughter.  Garet got up quickly and brushed himself off.  He was taller and better built than Isaac, and had brown hair that stood strait up.  He had brown eyes.  After a minute he chuckled.  'Yeah, that was pretty dumb wasn't it' he confessed in his mind.

"Yeah that was!"  Garet turned around and saw another young man walking up from the side.  He was a little younger than Isaac with dirty-blonde hair that he just let hang loosely around his head.

"Hey!  I thought you agreed not to read our minds!" Garet stated angrily at the younger teenager.

The boy's bright violet eyes went wide.  "Oops!"  With that he took off running.

"Get back here!  What else do you know!?" Garet yelled, while he ran after him, not succeeding in catching up though.

"Be careful Ivan, don't let him trip on you!  He'd probably kill you!" Isaac called after him.  He laughed again, and turned around to find himself face to face with a brown haired girl, about his age.  "Oh, hi Jenna."

Jenna, however, didn't look too happy.

"What's the matter?" Isaac asked, concern creeping into his voice.

"Isaac, I need to talk to you," Jenna said.

"What about?"  Isaac now locked his eyes on her brown ones, and his face became serious.

"Can you meet me here later tonight?"

"Why can't you tell me now?"

"I don't want them to know about it, not yet, anyway," Jenna said as she looked from side to side to see if any one else is around.  "Please Isaac?"

"..."

"Please," she repeated.

"Alright," he said hesitantly.  'Damn.  I don't like keeping things from my friends.'

Jenna left just as Isaac was reminded of Garet and Ivan's chase when he heard yelling in the background.  He turned back to his childhood friend; she's gone.

Isaac scratched his head.  'I wonder what she wants...'  He looked up at the sun; it was a little after noon.  His mother wanted him to fix the roof again, so he started walking home, not even bothering to tell his friends he's leaving.

A few seconds later, Ivan came up to where the conversation took place, a little out of breath.  He looked around for Isaac and found him walking off in the distance.  Ivan stood up straight and narrowed his eyes, watching him leave.  After a moment he closed his eyes and sighed.

"There you are."  Garet said as he approached from behind.  "No use running now," he taunted with a smile.

Ivan rolled his eyes and sprinted away again.

"Hey!"

_____  
Isaac was on his roof placing extra straw in the gaps.  He had been working most of the afternoon, and dusk was imminent.  He stood up and looked towards the setting sun and wiped the sweat from his brow.  He's been thinking about what Jenna wanted to talk about, since she had asked him to meet her.  Isaac just couldn't place it.  Jenna's never done something like this before.  Why now?

A few months ago they finally returned from Gondowan.  It's been a full year since Isaac and Garet had left Vale on their voyage.  Once they found Lemuria they had no reason for continuing their quest.  The Jupiter Lighthouse was destroyed, and Felix went down with it.  Isaac had actually tried to save him, even though he was considered their enemy.  He tried for Jenna.  He didn't want her to watch her brother die twice.  No one deserves that kind of grief.  NO ONE.  Despite his desperate efforts, however, he failed.

Isaac gritted his teeth.  He will never let her down again.  Whatever her problem may be, he will help her with it to the best of his ability and better.

Isaac sat down on the top of his house.  He watched the golden sun slowly creep down the reddening atmosphere.  From his point of view, he could see pretty much the entire valley stretching for miles to the horizon.  He looked down over the lower parts of the village.  Several houses dotted the thinned forest, and a large warehouse sitting in a clearing could easily be spotted.  From here Isaac could see his peoples' monument.  A crystal about the size of a giant ape rested on a small mound surrounded by water.  It stood triumphantly in the center of the plaza.

Isaac lay back on his roof.  He watched stretching cirrus clouds travel across a brilliant orange sky.  'Maybe I _will_ stay here after all,' he thought.  For the past month, Isaac contemplated leaving Vale.  After his adventure, he kind of wanted to get out and see the world again.

'Maybe I'll travel more in the future, but-'

Isaac's thoughts were interrupted by the faint sound of a snapping twig.  He sat up, searching around the house to see if anyone was there, nobody.

He averted his attention to a nearby entrance to the woods.  'Someone's there.'  He slowly made his way to the ladder and climbed down.  His first thought was that it was Garet playing a trick on him.  His second was that there's some animal wandering into the town.  'A deer?  At this time of day?  It's not even dark yet.'

In any case, the situation will not be spared of Isaac's cautious attention.  Knowing that his Gaia Blade was in his room standing in the corner, he picked up a stick about as long as his sword with a strong enough thickness.

Carefully Isaac approached the brush, the boarder-line between the forest and the village.  The stick he kept behind him, pointing out to his right horizontally to the ground.

Garet suddenly stumbled out of the bushes.  He caught his balance and stood strait up scratching the back of his head.  "Umm, hey Isaac," he said with an all too innocent look on his face.

Isaac just dropped his weapon and sighed in relief.  "What were you doing?" he asked in a slightly aggravated tone.

"Uhh, um.  You know what?  I not too sure."  Garet looked behind him into the woods.  "C'mon out Ivan, our cover's blown!"

The only reply was an exasperated groan followed by the younger teenager.  "You mean _your_ cover was blown, you moron.  Why did you have to do that, anyway?"

"Well if _I_ hadn't be-"

"Hey!" a very irritated Isaac interrupted.  "I want to know what you guys were doing there!"

"Why don't you tell him, Ivan?  Since I personally don't know exactly what you were trying to accomplish by sneaking up on Isaac."

"...Okay," Ivan breathed.  "I wanted to find out what was bothering you, Isaac.  Your conversation with Jenna looked somewhat disconcerting."

"Did you read my mind?"  Isaac demanded softly.

"As I implied, no."

Isaac kept calm over the entire situation.  Although he wasn't pleased about them trying to discover his problems by spying on him, he was glad Ivan was being truthful.  That's pretty much all Isaac wanted in return for his friendship, honesty.

"I promised Jenna I wouldn't tell anyone about her problem.  If she wanted you to know about it, I'm sure she'll tell you soon enough, okay?"

"Alright," Ivan said simply, understanding the situation.  He turned around and started home.  He's been living with the innkeeper for a couple of months, and he's now thinking about building a house in the northern parts of Vale.  "C'mon Garet," he shot back.

"What would Jenna want to keep from me anyway?" Garet grunted.

Isaac glared.  "I told you, she probably has her reasons for not telling you.  As a matter of fact, _I_ don't even know the details.  Are you happy now?" Isaac knew that Garet is Jenna's childhood friend too, but now his persistence is just rude.

"Fine." At length Garet finally agreed.  He turned and walked over to join Ivan.  They both started off in silence, and after a while Ivan came back, leaving his disgruntled companion to walk home by himself.

"What is it?" Isaac asked when Ivan approached.  Ivan looked back and saw that Garet was gone.  He turned back to Isaac.

"Garet's not going to tell Jenna that you told him she has a problem.  He does respect you Isaac.  He knows that telling Jenna about what you said will hurt your friendship with her."

"How did you know-...oh."  Isaac realized when Ivan simply gestured to his head.  Tapping his temple with his index finger.  "Thank you."  Isaac had started to worry about what he told Garet.  He was relieved now, thanks to Ivan.

"Hey Ivan, how come when you read Garet's mind, I didn't see you use psynergy?  I mean, that's twice now, and I never knew about it."

Ivan smiled.  "Well, my mind read ability is my most heavily trained, now it doesn't even use energy at all, or at least not enough for any other adept to notice."

"Wow, that means I'd better watch out right?"  Isaac replied humorously.

"No, I'm not going to break my promise.  I never told Garet I'd never read _his_ mind."

Isaac laughed.  "Yeah I guess that's true.  Anyway it's getting dark.  I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, see you later."  With that Ivan started towards the Inn at the plaza.

After Ivan disappeared behind some buildings.  Isaac stretched and gazed once more at the sunset.  The sun was now just a sliver of bright red light peeking over the distant mountains.  Shadows began to dominate the town and people started going into their houses to eat a well-anticipated meal.  Most of them wouldn't be seen again until next morning.

_____  
A full moon bathed the resting village in a pale silver glow.  Not a sound could be heard except the faint chirping of crickets in the not too distant woods and the flowing of water from the nearby river.  To a better-trained ear however, footsteps were making their way to the town plaza.  A shadow walked up to the aforementioned crystal, sitting silently on its little island in the night.  The figure sat down on the cool grass in front of the water and pulled back its hood.

"Isaac?" a voice in the background whispered.

The hooded man turned around and saw his friend Jenna come up behind him, her eyes straining to see in the dim light.  "Yeah it's me," Isaac reassured.

Jenna came up and sat down beside him.  "Thanks for coming Isaac."

"No problem.  But I have to wonder what it is you only want to tell me and not the others."  Isaac basically launched the conversation into progress.

"Umm.  You know how the Jupiter Lighthouse was destroyed?"

Isaac could see where this was going.  "Jenna I'm sorry that Felix-"

"No, no it's okay because, well, I know he's alive."  Jenna didn't look very unhappy about the subject.  In fact, she seemed confident.

"What!?  H-how do you know?"

"I...can't really explain, but I just have this feeling that he's ok."

"Jenna..."  Isaac knew she was probably right.  During her life she seemed to get premonitions about these things.  That's why, as she told him a few weeks back, she wasn't very scared when she was kidnapped.  She _knew_ that Isaac and his friends were going to be all right.  That meant they would not fail.  This ability, Kraden told him, was common in fire adepts.  "Alright.  So just what do you want to do about it?"

"..."

"What do you want to do?"  Isaac was curious as to how she planned to solve the problem.

"C-can we go find him?  I think he's in trouble, or at least, he will be if we don't do something soon."

"What?"  Isaac was kind of shocked.  Jenna wants to actually go back out there and find Felix.  'I mean, where could he be anyway?'  "Do you know where he is?" he asked her, not expecting much of an answer.

"...No."  Jenna replied with her head down.

'Do it.'  Isaac heard a voice in his head.  'You want to help Jenna, now do it.'

"Okay."  Isaac said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"I'll help you find him."  Isaac looked over at her, his eyes piercing hers.

Under his caring gaze, Jenna was suddenly filled with happiness.  She moved over and hugged Isaac, her arms reaching under his shoulders and squeezing him affectionately.  Her warmth and softness seemed to wrap around his soul, as well as his body.  "Thank you Isaac," she whispered against his chest.

Isaac was taken aback a little from her move.  Sure it felt good, but what did he do to deserve _this_?  All he did was agree to help her find her brother...oh.  Isaac thought back to all the times when he helped her when nobody else seemed to care.  Some times even Garet failed in this field of friendship.  'This means a lot to her, you deserve this.  You've deserved this years ago,' the voice reminded him.  After thinking for a few seconds Isaac recovered his wits and wrapped his arms around her waist, returning the soft embrace.

Isaac looked up at the moon.  Just then, his ears picked up on some sounds in the distance.  Splashing, abnormal.  Once he heard something else, someone calling out, he knew exactly what it was.

"Someone's in the river!"  Isaac exclaimed trying to get up.

"Who?"  Jenna released her hold from Isaac.

"I don't know.  C'mon!"

Isaac and Jenna ran through the plaza and into the dark forest to the west, where Isaac thought he heard the noises.  They sped their way through the brush, tall grasses, and fallen trees, following the cries for help.

Isaac was the first to arrive at the river.  He looked down into the small gorge and the searched the raging waters.  Jenna came up behind Isaac and halted abruptly, almost pushing him in also.

"Do you see him!?" Isaac asked Jenna voicing over the noise of the rapids a little ways upstream.

"No!" was Jenna's reply.

Isaac looked harder at the small patch of rapids.  "There!"  He pointed at someone hanging onto some roots protruding from the far side of the muddy ravine.  From the looks of it he wouldn't be able to hold on much longer.

"Hold on, we'll get you out!" Isaac yelled over to him.  He and Jenna ran to a giant log bridge and started making their way across as fast as they could without endangering themselves also.

"Are you all right?" Isaac called to him when he jumped off the end of the log and slid down the muddy cliff.  If he didn't have any injuries, this wouldn't be very complicated.

"I'm s-stuck," was the man's only reply.

"Where?"

"M, my le-leg," he managed to get out.  "I think ih-it's b-broken."

"Damn.  So much for things being simple..."  Isaac examined the root that he was hanging onto.  "Alright just hold on.  I'll have you out in a second."  He turned to Jenna, who was watching the entire seen worriedly.  "Jenna, go to the inn!  Have Ivan get some blankets and start a fire, and then go get Mia!  I'll meet you all there!"  Jenna immediately obeyed, and ran back over the log and disappeared in the silver-lit forest.

Isaac turned his attention to the young man again.  "Which leg?"

"R-righ, right."

Isaac submerged himself and examined the situation under water.  There was a maze of tree roots down there also.  Isaac could hardly see basically because of two things.  One was the fact that the water was icy cold and it hurt like hell to open his eyes.  The second was because it was almost pitch dark, and the only light was from the moon overhead.

Isaac could, however, make out a foot in the midst of the root-trap.  He came back up.  "Okay," he said.  "This may hurt somewhat, but at least you'll be out, and I can take you to my village."

"..."

"Hey, are you okay!?  Say something!"  Isaac started to worry.  If he didn't get this guy out and fast, there will be no saving him.

The man looked up slowly.  "Y-yeah.  I'm f-f-fine, ok."

'Whew.'  Isaac ducked back under and reached over to his trapped foot.  He gripped the vines that held his leg, and started to pull them apart.

The man above the water, on the other hand, didn't really feel anything.  Most of his body was pretty much numb, which is why he's not too sure anymore if his leg is really broken.  He did feel that his leg was free, though, and its buoyancy took over, hovering in the running water.

A second later Isaac came back up and gasped.  "Gods that's cold!!!"  He reached over and took the young man's arm over his shoulder, guiding them out of the water.

Isaac struggled up the slippery ledge, hanging onto a low branch and basically pulled them up with one arm.  About eight feet above the chilly water, they reached the top, and Isaac rolled the man off his shoulder resting him on the ground.

Breathing hard, Isaac took off his black cloak and wrapped it around the shivering victim of the relentless river.  "Just hold on," he assured.  "J-just a little longer..." Isaac shivered.  The cold was already getting to him a little bit.

Isaac picked up the young man into a fireman's carry, and started making his way slowly across the log bridge.  Luckily he made it across without slipping.  He trudged through the deep grass and ferns, almost tripping on a couple of unearthed tree roots.  'Damn,' he thought.  'If I don't keep my pace up, were both gonna freeze!'  The cold water he was just in was taking its toll on his strength.  It might even feel warmer in the river now instead of the contrasting air of the late autumn night.  Isaac began to march faster.

__  
Ivan fed a few more logs into the fire, bringing the flames to a new state of vigor.  He had already gotten some blankets out and set them on the bed of a vacant room.  He now waited in the main hall.

The only details he knew was that someone's in trouble and Isaac would be bringing him in any minute now.  At least that's what Jenna hastily said before sprinting out the door again.

At that last thought somebody burst through the door.  It was Isaac with an unconscious man on his back.  Isaac himself looked pretty worn out.

"A bed!" Isaac commanded simply.

"Yeah, this way."  Ivan quickly led him to the room he was preparing.

Isaac rushed over to the bed and slipped the man off his back and onto the soft bedspread.  After removing his clothes, he quickly grabbed the blankets and wrapped them around him.

Just then Ivan heard more people coming into the building.  Ivan left to greet them, only to return a few seconds later with Jenna and another young woman with long sky-blue hair and aqua eyes.  She was dressed in white and blue robes and a large decorated sash tied around her waist.

Isaac wasted no time.  "He said his leg is broken," he said turning to the young woman.  "Mia, could you heal it?"

"Sure," she replied.  "Which one?"

"The right."

Mia walked over and placed her palm over the man's right leg.  Her hand began to glow a pale blue light.

Isaac turned to Jenna.  "Thank you," he said to her.

"No problem," Jenna responded.

"He's not going to make it if he doesn't stay warm.  The blankets may not be 

enough..."

"I know."  Jenna already knew what to do.  She went over to the young man and slid her hand under his neck.  She winced at how cold his skin was then she closed her eyes.  The area around her hand slowly became warmer.  She was radiating heat through his body.

When Mia was done healing his leg, Jenna pulled away also.  Mia went to Isaac.  

"Okay, he should be fine now.  Just keep him warm and make sure the fire doesn't go out.  When he wakes up, keep him in bed and give him only warm water.  He can have soup, but nothing else, alright?"

Isaac scratched his head.  "Um, ok."

"Good.  I'm going back to bed."  Mia yawned, and went out the room, intent on making her way back to Jenna's place, where she was currently living.  "Coming Jenna?"

"Yeah, just a sec."  Jenna walked over to Isaac and hugged him even though his outfit was still damp.  "Thanks Isaac," she said, obviously referring to the conditions from earlier.  "We'll talk more tomorrow, ok?"

"Sure thing."

With that Jenna left and caught up with Mia.  They both then walked off to her house, that is, if they can get there without collapsing and sleeping on the ground first.

"Ivan, can you keep an eye on him for tonight?  I'll be back first thing in the morning."

"That's fine."  Ivan reached over to the desk and got the chair, setting it next to the bed.

"Alright, see you tomorrow.  Thank you."

Ivan's only response was a yawn that seemed to make Isaac even more tired.  "See you later..."

_____  
Isaac made his way home and pondered several things.  For one thing, who was this young man?  What was he doing in the forest in the first place?  Then his thoughts wandered to even earlier than that.  He promised Jenna he'd help find Felix.  'Well, the journey can't be made with just two people,' he thought.

'And why not?'  It was that voice again.

'Huh?'

'Why can't you two make the trek alone?'  The voice repeated.

'Because it's dangerous.'  Isaac answered.

'Dangerous for you, or her?'

'Both of us.'

'How?'

'What do you mean, _how_?' Isaac defended

'You're afraid you might hurt her.'

'I'd never do that!'

'You're afraid of letting her know how you feel about her.'

'Dammit, how do you know so much!?' Isaac was getting a little irritated with this 'voice' in his head.

'I am your mind,' it said plainly.

'Curses!'  Isaac tried to shut himself out without much luck.

'Do you love her?'

'What?  O-of course I love her!'

'I don't mean in that way.  Do you love her?'

'I,...I'm not sure,' Isaac confessed.

'Then tell her how you feel.'

'Wha.'  Isaac was confused now.  'What do mean by that? By the way, if you _are_ me, then how come you are asking questions?  Aren't you supposed to know those answers already?'

'You don't seem to know yourself,' the voice said simply.  'How am I expected to know if you don't?'

Isaac started getting frustrated.  In an irritating way, he knew the voice was right.

'Besides, that's not the point,' the voice continued.

'What's not the point?'

'You're supposed to admit these things to yourself, not me,' the voice said.

Isaac sighed.  'He's right,' he thought to himself.  'Alright, just give me a little more time.'

'Fine, but I suggest you go on this trip alone; the two of you.  I guarantee you'll thank me later.  And don't worry about your safety.  You and Garet made a similar quest, did you not?'

'...Yes.'  Isaac finally agreed with the voice.

'...and you turned out fine, so you can make the trip again with only two people.'

Isaac knew he was losing the argument.  'But Jenna's a-'

'Girl?' the voice interrupted.  'True, but you must not underestimate her skill and power.  She can easily compare to Garet in any field.'

'Alright,' Isaac gave up.  'I'll think about it, but I'm not guaranteeing anything, agreed?'

'Agreed.'

'Whew, now I just want to get some sleep.  I still have a comatose person to tend to in the morning.'

With the voice gone, Isaac quietly entered his house and lightly went to his room.  Without even bothering to change out of his clothes, he let himself fall onto the bed, asleep before his head hit the pillow.

_____  
_Author's notes_:

(1) Sorry that took so long to get uploaded.  For a while I lost access to the computer I was using to type this story.  Now the chapters should be released just a little faster.

(2) There will be some music cues for this story later on.  Mostly songs I thought kind of fit into the character and mood.  I will include these cues in between paragraphs, and when the entire story is finished, I'll make an enhanced list of all the songs used (some of the music will change but the list at the end, or the 'soundtrack' as I like to call it, should be official).

(3) In case you haven't noticed, there were two versions of the first chapter, Road to Home.  Some people read the first one (approx. 1400 words) and didn't seem to like it.  I went back and carefully read it over myself, and found many mistakes.  I also found that it was kind of confusing.  So what I did was: I revised the first chapter, and reposted it onto fanfiction.net (approx. 1700 words), and that's what you all see now, the second version. (and would you believe it, I got some good reviews!)  So thank you all for the support, I believe you will like what I have in store for you. (you know I guess it's true what they say, it always helps to actually read what you write.)

So thank you again,

~master


	3. Zeran

_Chapter 3______Zeran

A bright ray of sunlight shone through Isaac's window and danced over the sleeping warriors face.  He stirred, and opened his eyes, only to quickly shut them again since he was looking directly at the early morning sun.

Isaac inhaled deeply through his nose, and lifted himself into a 'push-up' position.  He turned over and sat on his bed, looking around.  That's when he noticed he was still in his clothes.  He felt them.  They were slightly damp.

'That's right.  I've got to get over to Ivan's,' he reminded himself.  Isaac stood up and headed toward the door.  He didn't really feel like changing, and the sun would dry his outfit well enough.  Mostly awake, he made his way downstairs.

"Good morning Isaac," said a voice.

Isaac yawned, "morning Mia."  Isaac headed over to the counter to get a cup of chorici.  "Wait what?"  He turned around to see a young woman with sea-blue hair and matching eyes sitting at the table.  "I mean, Mia what are you doing here?" Isaac asked when he sat at the table across from her.

"Your mother and I are going shopping today, and she's just treating me to breakfast."  Mia gave him a mock glare.  "Is there something wrong with that?"

Isaac shook his head.  "No, no.  That's fine.  It's just, I didn't expect to see you here first thing in the morning, that's all."

Mia laughed.  "Well surprise.  By the way, did you do what I said to tend to that boy?"

"Uh, well that's just what I was about to do," Isaac said when he got up and grabbed a piece of toast off the plate in the center of the table.  "I'll see ya later, okay?"

"All right, bye," said Mia as Isaac left.  She looked at the cup that he didn't drink at all from.

"Do what?" asked a woman in her mid-thirties as she walked into the kitchen.

"Hm?  Oh, Isaac saved a young man from the river last night," Mia informed.

"What!?"  The woman looked shocked.  "Where is he now?"

"At the inn.  He seems to be doing fine, though."

"How come I haven't heard about this?" the woman questioned.

"Well, it was rather late when it happened, and Isaac seemed pretty drained from the effort, and not to mention the temperature of the river."

The woman just sighed and sat down where Isaac was sitting a moment ago.  "That's just like him.  Always going out of his way to help other people.  The river is pretty cold.  Is Isaac ok?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Thank goodness," the woman breathed.  "Oh, and Mia?"  She picked up the chorici that Isaac had left and began sipping at it.

"Ma'am?"

"Please, call me Dora."

__  
The young man in the inn opened his eyes.  Everything was blurry at first, but as his vision cleared, he saw another person sleeping on a chair next to the bed.  By the looks of it, the blonde boy on the chair wasn't a whole lot younger than him:  a couple of years or so.  
He studied his surroundings.  He was in a room that was actually a section on a larger one, with a single bed.  'Probably a symmetrical double bedroom, but that's not even the point.  _Where_ am I?'

Just then he heard footsteps coming up some stairs, then he saw another person come around the edge of the partial wall and approach the bed.

"Well, it looks like you're doing ok," he said.  He was about the same age as him, with spiky golden hair.  He placed a hand on the blonde boy's shoulder and gently shook him awake.  "Ivan wake up."

"Huh?"  Ivan yawned and looked up at his waker and then at him.  "Oh, he's up."

"How are you feeling?" the older one asked.

"I guess I'm ok.  I feel fine."  He started to get out of bed.

"Not too quickly," the spiky haired man warned.

He took his advice and slowly stood up without any problems.  Then he froze and looked at the other two with a confused look on his face.

"What is it?" Ivan asked.

"I thought my leg was broken."

"It was, but Mia healed it," the older one informed.

"Who?"

"A friend of mine.  You'll meet her later.  By the way, my name is Isaac."

"Nice to meet you.  You're the one who pulled me out of the river?"

"That's right.  So, what were you doing in there in the first place?"

"I fell in," the young man replied.

"Yeah, I kinda figured that one out, but what were you doing before that?"

"I was headed here, following the river, but I slipped and fell in.  Then I was washed a good ways down through the woods, and got stuck on some roots in the water...breaking my...leg."  He examined his right leg, verifying the fact that he felt no pain at all.  "You said a friend of yours 'healed' it?" he said looking perplexed.

"Yep," Isaac said simply.

"Incredible," he said barely under his breath.  "How?"

"She's a healer.  You don't know how to use psynergy?" Isaac asked.

"What's that?"

"It focuses the power of the four elements into a spell, then is cast on a specific target.  In some places they call it magic."

"Oh, Magic.  I see."

"You can use it?"

"No, but where I come from most people can use it.  I was never trained to be a magician.  I'm a swordmaster; I don't like to rely on spells and other crap to defeat my foes.  I like using pure skill of the hand and body."

Isaac nodded.  "Me too, mostly, though I use some psynergy every once and a while."

"Hey Isaac.  Aren't we supposed to meet Garet in a little bit," Ivan interrupted.

"That's right.  Well I'll see you later if you'll be fine on your own.  I'm sorry I can't show you the town, but please feel free to take a look around for yourself if you want to get out of the inn."

"Alright, I'll see you later then."

Isaac and Ivan left.  The young man looked around and noticed his sword was missing.  He still had the sheath strapped to his back, though.

"Crap."

Just then Isaac came back in the room.  "You know, I haven't gotten your name yet."

"Oh, It's Zeran."

"Zeran," Isaac confirmed.  "Ok, well I've gotta go now, later."

"Bye."  Isaac left again and Zeran searched through his pockets, sure enough his pouch was still there with the two gems inside, thankfully.  'Maybe my sword is still downstream.'

Zeran walked out of the inn and looked around the plaza.  It was a bright morning, and just about everyone was out to take advantage of the fine weather and 'get some work done'.

I wonder what kind of currency they use here.  I seriously doubt they'll accept Galen.  He looked around in some of the stores, and found nothing of interest.  Even the weapons were crap compared to his blade.

"Dammit my sword.  It's still in the water somewhere.  I have to find it!"  Zeran stood still for a moment; he heard the sounds of the waters in the wooded distance.  He took off in that direction and, once he was out of the town, made his way through the forest.

He arrived at the ravine and searched up and down the running water.  There were a few mild rapids and a large log bridge a little ways upstream.  Under it a bunch of tangled tree roots were barely visible under the surface.  'That's probably where I got stuck,' he thought.

Looking further up the river, he pondered the situation.  'I fell into the river pretty late.  It wasn't much later when I was pulled out.  That means the point of fall was not too far up there.  About a kilometer or so.  My sword can't be past that point.'

Zeran started upstream.  He kept his watch for the place he remembers falling in.  In a few minutes he came across a large clearing where the river widened out over a large platform of dark stone.  The main river stepped its way down the rock and ended noisily with a small waterfall spilling into the deep forest below.  'Here it is!'  He looked around at the place.  There was a massive boulder jutting up on the side of the waterfall at the lower end of the clearing.  'I climbed up on that thing to see if I could get a better view of the area.  The moon was bright last night, and I could still see a good distance through the woods.'

He carefully made his way across the ankle deep water toward the rock.  He accidentally stepped into a deeper pool and soaked most of his right leg.  "Ghhedd!!  Cold!!" he exclaimed while pulling his leg out and holding onto it.  The water was like slush.  The only thing keeping it from frosting over instantly was the fact that it was moving.  After spending a moment rubbing his leg trying to warm it, Zeran climbed up on top and searched around.

'I remember what happened.  I slipped and fell into the water below.'  He cautiously peered over the edge and down the small cliff.  The waterfall splashed into a large pond about 20 feet or so from where he sat.  'So my sword has to be down there or beyond.'

Zeran climbed down and made his way to the bottom of the cliff.

_____  
Isaac stood in the plaza staring at the massive dark blue crystal sitting on a tiny island in a small pool of water.  In the front the distance was just short enough to jump over to it.  He sat down and thought about the night before when he agreed he help Jenna find her brother and how she hugged him.  Then they saved Zeran from the river.  'Wait a minute.  I haven't seen him all day since the inn.  I wonder where he is.'  Isaac looked up and noted it was noon.  'He might still be exploring around town.'

He got up and walked toward the stairs leading to the upper parts of town.  When he got there he saw Ivan coming down.

"Hey Ivan, have you seen Zeran?"

"Who?"

"The man we helped," Isaac explained.

"Oh.  No I haven't seen him since this morning.  He's probably looking for his sword."

"How do you know that?"

"When you brought him in the inn last night I noticed he had a sheath but no sword.  I figured he lost it in the river, and now that's most likely where he is now."

"Alright thanks."  Isaac started off toward the woods on the western side of town.

__  
Zeran stepped over a massive log jutting out of the bank over the pool.  He studied the foaming water that most likely hid his blade.  'I can't very well see in there.  Maybe I'd have to dive in,' he shivered at the thought.  'Well might as well do it now.'

He tightened his boots and belt, and made sure everything was secure.  He took off his pouch and placed it next to the log.  "Here goes..."

Zeran dove into the water.  He was instantly greeted by an agonizing wave of coldness.  He went to the surface and caught his breath.  Knowing that he has to press on, he quickly breathed in and out to get a good supply of air in his lungs.  Holding that supply, he dived under again.  Zeran searched the bottom of the pool for his sword.  No luck.  He looked around the bed of rocks forcing his eyes to stay open.  The sword was not there.

He surfaced and swam for the bank with the log.  The young warrior climbed out and lay on the mass of wood sapped of his strength.  "Further...down.  It has to be."  Zeran just rested there for a while.

__  
Isaac crossed the river at the log bridge that he carried Zeran over the night before.  He'd probably be searching further upstream if that's where he fell in, if his sword fell out of its sheath when he did.

Now on the far side from the town, Isaac made his way upstream, keeping an eye out for the sword if he happened to see it first.  He crossed over fallen trees and large rocks, all the while passing through tall ferns and other brush.

Isaac knew he was getting close to a large clearing where the river flattens out over a floor of stone.  'Maybe I'll find something there-' Isaac stopped.  He saw a white glimmer in the water to his right.  He got closer keeping an eye on the gleam.  When Isaac was standing over the side of the gully, he peered closely into the clear water.  "I wonder..."  He jumped over onto a small ledge just above the surface.  As soon as he landed his feet sunk about a foot into soft mud.

"Aaggh...dammit."  Isaac tried to pull his feet out of the substance, but the suction was too powerful.  He sighed and dug out around him.  When the mud was a little shallower he pulled his feet out and fell back into the river.  He almost panicked.  Reacting to the icy cold conditions, he grabbed onto the nearest thing he felt with his hands.  His right found itself holding onto a large tree root while his left grabbed an object that felt similar to the root, but straighter and smoother.  He used the root to pull himself up toward the surface while he held onto the other item.

When his head was out of the water he swam toward the edge.  He crawled onto the ground and shivered from the cold.  After a few moments he sat up and looked at what was in his hand.  It was a sword.  It had a short blade with a hilt wrapped in leather, and had a brilliant red stone on the end.

"Well what are the odds...?" Isaac smiled to himself.  He stood up and trudged up the side of the river, intent on finding Zeran.

__  
After pulling himself out of another section of the rushing water, Zeran was on the verge of giving up his search.  "Damn, where can it be?"  Just then he heard someone approaching in the wooded distance.  He jumped back behind a fallen tree trunk.  Peering over the edge he saw Isaac come into view, holding a small sword.  "That..." he whispered.  "That looks like my sword!"  Zeran jumped up and called out to him.  Isaac turned his attention to the young man on the log about forty feet away, and ran up to meet him.

"Hey, you found my sword!"

"Yeah," Isaac replied.  "I found it in the river right down there."  He pointed at the thicket to the south.  "When I saw it glimmer I got closer to investigate, and then I fell in and grabbed it by chance."

"Thank you," Zeran said when Isaac handed the blade to him.  He instantly sheathed it behind his right shoulder.  "So I guess that's the end of that.  I'm hungry, does the inn serve any food?"

"Of course.  But why don't you come to my house for supper?"  Isaac offered.

"You're sure that'll be alright with your parents?"

"Yes I'm sure, with my mother at least.  Maybe we'll still be able to catch Mia there.  C'mon!"  Isaac started down the side of the brook, and Zeran followed.  All the while Isaac's thoughts dwelled on the promise he made to Jenna.

_____  
_Author's notes_:

(1) I'm sorry that it took so long for this chapter to be released.  I had the first draft finished for quite some time, but the corrections and revisions have fallen victim to my renowned tendency to procrastinate.  I promise I'll try harder to get more chapters out sooner.  The story should get more interesting since the real action/_adventure_ part is about to get here.  These chapters are just needed to get the characters in place.

(2) xT-Zealot (if you're reading this) Please go back and finish _Gohan Meets Sasami_ and _Love at Hogwarts_.  Recently I've been reading a number of Gohan/Sasami fics, and, of course, I become somewhat of a fan.  Those two stories seemed very promising, but you need to go back and focus on them for a little bit, please.  Also, you need to tell Pal that she needs to continue on _Okayama Summer_ for very similar reasons.  I appreciate your cooperation greatly.  Thank you.

(3) I'll be releasing a 'Notes on Turn the Page'.  The terms you saw in the story that do not seem to be in the English language (such as chorici and Galen) will be discussed in this section.  This part will explain more as the story progresses.

Until next time, this is Master Barrin, signing out.

~master


	4. Legends Old and New

_Chapter 4______Legends Old and New

Isaac stood on a jagged protrusion of rock jutting sharply out of the earth.  He was high on the surface of Mt. Aleph.  He inhaled deeply.  He thought of many matters as he gazed out over the valley, seeing as far as a distant, hazy plain past the mountains where he knew their neighbors, Vault, made their home.

He mostly thought about his newest and biggest problem.

'I suppose that I _could_ make the journey.  I am definitely skilled enough, but what about Jenna?'  Isaac remembered his little 'conversation' with himself.  'She is strong.  I can't treat her like she constantly needs protection anymore.'

After another moment of careful consideration, Isaac made up his mind.

__  
Zeran was sleeping in the inn.  On the outside, nobody would suspect that very important matters were moving through his head.

'How do I get back!' Zeran said with irritation.

The figure before him remained silent.  It appeared to be a man with demonic wings.  At length he complied.  'First acquire the stones.  Then you may return to Reia.'

'Stones?'

'You hold two already: the Tsunami and the Voltersage.  Four gems remain, one of which lies within this world.'

Zeran remembered the sapphire and the topaz.  'They have names?  What are they for?'  He was gaining back his patience.

'They are great blades assigned to each of the Gachi.  Each one holds the powers of the elements.'

'Elemental Blades...Who are the Gachi?'

'They were a team of six warriors sent to Reia, your home-planet, to rid it of evil.  Upon their arrival, however, one of them broke away from the others and allowed himself to become corrupt and evil,' the figure informed.

'Each had an elemental blade, and each controlled their respective elements: Fire, Wind, Water, Ice, Earth, and Lightning.  Once the bond between each of the Gachi and their powers was broken, the stones scattered about the dimensions.'

The dark figure continued, 'Aenerik, the warrior of water, was the one who broke the bond and became wicked.  You were lucky to find his stone early, before he could.  You found the Voltersage first.  It was then that the remaining Gachi decided to help you gather the stones, and that is why I sent you through dimensions.'

'The Voltersage is the name of the sword, right?'  This was slowly making some sense to Zeran.

'Yes,' the shadowy figure confirmed.

'What are the other stones' names?' Zeran questioned.

'The stone of water is the Tsunami.  You hold now along with it the Voltersage, the stone of lightning.  The Cinderone is the stone of fire, and the Glaciaga is the stone of ice.  The power of wind is held in the Aerashi, and the same for earth in the Granaphel.'

Zeran scratched his head.  'Maybe you should tell me about the stones as I find them.'

'That sounds reasonable.'  If Zeran could see the man's face through the darkness, he might have been smiling.

Zeran took a deep breath.  'Okay, I just have one more question.  What does all this have to do with me?'

The dark figure answered.  'You are the one that the Gachi have chosen to destroy Aenerik.  They couldn't have defeated him because the bond was broken and they became weak.  Aenerik, on the other hand, having received the aid of another dark power, became stronger.  Now you, with the stones, are the only one who can defeat him.'

'How come I can't give the stones back to the Gachi?'

'There are two reasons mainly.  One is because Aenerik has, over time, hunted down and killed two of the others.  Since our bond has already been broken, it can never be restored to its full power again; not without all six warriors.  Even with that Aenerik himself is one of the Gachi, and he can never be allowed to use the Tsunami again.'

'...And the other reason?' Zeran inquired.

'I cannot tell you at this time.  You must find the other gems.  When you have found the stone in this world I can take you to the next dimension to find the others.'

Zeran remained silent.

'Your best chance is to follow Isaac on his quest.  Just tell me when you are ready to leave after you have found the stone.  Farewell.'

Everything faded away into darkness again, as if it wasn't already.  And Zeran's vision was replaced by the ceiling of his inn-room.  He groaned and brought his hands up to his face and over his forehead, pulling his hair back.

Zeran sat up and looked out the window.  Then it hit him.  'Isaac's going on a quest?'

_____  
Mia looked up and down the several displays of charms and other accessories at the shop.  She's thinking of getting Isaac a sunstone amulet for his birthday.  She inspected it closely in her delicate hands.  It was only two hundred gold coins to buy, and she could definitely afford it, considering she still had some leftover money from her travels.

"Do you have any gauntlets?" someone next to her asked the shopkeeper.

Mia turned her head and saw the young man Isaac rescued from the river two nights ago.  "So how are you doing now?" she asked him.

"Huh?"  Zeran turned his attention to her.  "What do you mean?"

"Well since I'm the one who healed you after you had that unfortunate episode in the river, it's only my business to be concerned about your immediate health."

"Umm...you're Mia?"

"That's right."  Mia beamed.  "So, how are you feeling?"

"Never felt better.  Thank you."

Mia smiled.  "You're welcome.  So what's your name?"

"Zeran.  It's amazing that you could heal my leg like that."

Mia just blinked, looking puzzled.  "You never heard of Psynergy?"

"Yeah, yesterday.  Isaac told me about it.  From where I come from we call it Magic, but no one could do healing spells as powerful as to heal wounds or mend broken bones."

"What _do_ your healers do?" she asked.

"There are none.  Potions and Elixirs can make wounds heal faster, but not instantly.  Magic can be used similarly, but rarely.  It's mostly just useful for vitalizing stamina and energy during battle."

"I'm sorry to hear that you don't have any healers," Mia sympathized.

"That's okay, we manage."  Zeran reassured.

"Where do you come from, anyway?"

"Re-" Zeran paused.  "Reia.  It's a kingdom in the far west."  He lied.  'Damn, I hope there even _is_ a West on this continent.  For all I know there could be nothing but ocean that way.'

"Oh, okay."

'Whew.'

"So what are you doing in Angara?"

"Buh."  Zeran had to think fast.  He scratched the back of his head.  "Um, I don't remember."

"You don't remember," Mia said crossing her arms and raising one eyebrow.

"Yeah.  You see I have amnesia, and I can't remember why I started this trip."

"You're lying."  Mia said plainly.  "Just tell me the truth.  It's not like I'll tell anybody if you don't want me to."

"Sorry."  Zeran hung his head.  "You wouldn't believe me anyway."

"I can be the judge of that."

"Alright.  I'm actually from another dimension, a planet called Reia.  I was transported here to find an elemental stone."

Mia's ears perked up at the sound of those two words.  "Stone?"

Zeran continued, "I'm not sure which one though."

Mia looked puzzled.  "Which...?"

"I can't leave until I find it.  The six of them are supposed to unite a Strength capable of destroying a powerful Evil."

Mia was now very interested in his story.  'The elemental stones?  Six of them?  Why is he only looking for one?'  All sorts of questions circled in her head.

Zeran grew silent.  He suddenly felt uncomfortable around this person.  He felt he didn't want anything to do with other people.  "Excuse me; I have to go," he said quickly before walking swiftly out of the shop.

"Hey wait!"  She hurried after him and stopped right outside the doorway.  She was too late.  Zeran was already nowhere in sight.

'He's after the stones, or one of them-'

"Hey are you gonna pay for that!?"  The shopkeeper's voice interrupted her thoughts.

Mia looked at the amulet in her hand, and turned back inside.  "Sorry about that."  She paid for the artifact, stuck it deep in her inside pocket, and left.  She needed to talk to Isaac, and quick.

_____  
Isaac looked up at the late noon sun and knocked on Jenna's door, which was shortly opened by the young brown haired woman herself.

"Oh Isaac, hi."

"Hi Jenna.  Listen I need to know when you'll be ready to go."

"Go?...Oh!"  She lowered her voice.  "You mean to find Felix?"

"Yeah.  When can you be ready?"

"When are we leaving?" asked Jenna.

"That's exactly what I'm asking."  Isaac smiled.

She laughed.  "Well I can be ready just about anytime."  She looked into the house behind her, then back at Isaac.  "When will you?"

"Tomorrow morning.  Early.  Be packed and sleep in the living room.  I'll come in and wake you up."

"Sounds good."

"Great then.  I'll see you tomorrow morning."  Isaac turned to leave.

"Bye."

"Bye."  He started to walk away.

"Isaac," Jenna said quickly.

"Yes," he turned.

Jenna stood there for a second.  "Thank you."

"No problem."  Isaac smiled warmly.  "See you tomorrow."  With that he turned again and left.

__  
Zeran sat against a large boulder lodged precariously in the center of a small clearing.  He thought about the journey he was about to embark on.

His thoughts also dwelled on his growing problem.  'Why did I have to just leave like that?'  Zeran felt the need to _not_ trust anyone.  'That's been happening a lot lately.  I wonder why...'

He thought more about this quest ahead of him, thinking hard about traveling around other people, especially with his problem.  'Maybe I _should_ go with Isaac.'

At length he stood up and adjusted his equipment.  After another moment of careful consideration, Zeran made up his mind.

_____  
_Author's notes_:

(1) I actually figured out the history of the stones and why Zeran is searching for them!  This story should be much easier to write now.  Expect the next chapter soon.

(2) Zeran noticed his growing need to anti-socialize again.  This was noted in the first chapter, but didn't show up very obviously in the second and third.

(3) When this chapter was released, I went back and revised the earlier chapters.  For those who have already read this far:  You do not need to go back and read them again, the changes aren't _that_ important.

(4) If anyone's confused about the whole matter of the elemental stones Zeran was talking about, and that he was talking about there being six of them, GOOD!  Mia was sure confused.  That means I did my job right.  Don't worry; the stones Zeran seeks are _not_ the same as the Elemental Stars.

(5) The Notes on 'Turn the Page', as discussed in chapter three, will no longer be a separate entry on fanfiction.net.  It will be added as an appendix to this one.  It will always be the last chapter for reference.

Later,

~master


	5. Appendix

Appendix

This document may also be referred to from the other stories I write.

Disclaimer:  Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, and Breath of Fire belong to Nintendo, Square, and Capcom respectfully.  The terms defined in this manuscript belong to me.

_Turn the Page_______Chapter 3:   Zeran_

**Chorici**   (Koor ee' see)  
Drink similar to coffee.  In fact, it is coffee.  They're both made from a tropical bean.

**Galen**   (Gal' en)  
Currency used in Reia.  A jachorisum coin, thin, and has an elongated shape similar to a military ID tag.

w1 (one galen) is worth approx:  
 0.06 rupees (Legend of Zelda)  
 1.122 gil (Final Fantasy)  
 1.3 zenny (Breath of Fire)  
 .402 dollars (United States)

_Turn the Page_______Chapter 4:   Legends Old and New_

**Gachi**   (Gaa' chee)  
According the Reian Legend, they were six mighty warriors sent to rid the world of evil, but shortly after their arrival, the bond between them broke, and they were scattered to the ends of the world.

_Miscellaneous______

**Reia**   (Ray' uh)  
Zeran's home planet.  It has a slower rotation than Earth, resulting in a 401-day calendar.

**Jachorisum**   (Ja Koor' ih sum)  
Element on the Reian periodic table.  Chemically, the only difference in the Reian and Earthling tables is the names of elements.  Jachorisum basically is Aluminum on Earth.

_____  
_Author's notes_:

(1) This will increase as more of my stories come out.  If you don't understand a word in one of them, it will probably be cleared up here.

~master


End file.
